3/05/2001 @ 12:00PM

Bill Clinton: Celebrity-In-Chief

Three weeks before he left office, former President
Bill
Clinton
Bill Clinton
tied for first with
Pope
John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
in a Gallup poll asking Americans who they most admire. If that same poll were taken today, after the
Marc
Rich
Marc Rich
pardon scandal, the result would likely be different. But next year, Clinton will likely take a top spot in another poll–the Forbes Celebrity 100.

Brace yourself.

When Bill Clinton said on his last day in office that he wasn’t going away, he wasn’t kidding. He has dominated the news as an ex-president so far. Most of the stories, to be sure, have been negative. But in creating our Celebrity 100, we adhere to the adage that there is no such thing as bad publicity, and Clinton’s publicity could place him near the top of the Celebrity List next year. He could, even without Air Force One, wind up at number one.

Clinton, already the most famous man in the world, stands to earn as much as $18 million this year. The money will come from a book deal (roughly $8 million to $10 million) and speaking fees (as much as $10 million), plus any corporate board memberships he chooses to take on. In addition, Clinton has been inundated with endorsement offers, corporate job offers and teaching offers, not that he is likely to accept any, according to a source close to the ex-president.

Publishing experts say Clinton should earn an advance in the neighborhood of the $8 million
Simon & Schuster
paid his wife, U.S. Sen.
Hillary
Clinton
Hillary Clinton
. It will be done “more quietly,” says Esther Newberg, a literary agent who also represents
Don
Imus
Don Imus
. “He can go state to state to promote the book. In towns that have never seen a president, people will get very excited.”

Despite the public misgivings by those who invited him, and Morgan Stanley’s much-touted “apology” after-the-fact, the speaking offers have only increased. He will likely fetch $100,000 and up for domestic engagements, more if he travels overseas.

Some people may be squeamish about associating themselves with the former chief executive who pardoned the tax dodger. But this is business, not personal.

The money alone would put the ex-president in the middle of the Forbes list. But in the other categories, he will lead much as he once did the free world.

In Web hits, Clinton will be near the top, ahead of all but pop superstars like
Britney
Spears
Britney Spears
. But in press clips and TV and radio hits, Clinton would rocket ahead. And in magazine covers, a bonus category, Clinton would probably come in first simply on the strength of his coverage to date.

If he does something else scandalous, say, in his personal life, his rating will only increase. If, and this is pure speculation, he and Hillary split up, the way
Tom
Cruise
Tom Cruise
and
Nicole
Kidman
Nicole Kidman
did, his power rating could go off the charts.